Labor brokers blamed for boat accident
Labor brokers blamed for boat accident
JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Manpower Abdul Latief blamed labor brokers Saturday for the boat accident that killed at least 53 Indonesian job seekers attempting to illegally enter Malaysia last week.
Latief urged the police to track the brokers down and hold them responsible for the accident which occurred off Johor, Malaysia on Nov. 12.
In a press statement made available to The Jakarta Post, Latief extended his sympathy to the victims' families and said he wanted to see the scalpers brought to trial.
The accident happened when the motor boat carrying 90 Indonesian job seekers capsized in the Malaka Strait, just two miles from Tanjung Balau, Johor.
The Ministry of Manpower said that 53 people died in the accident, but the Antara bureau in Malaysia put the death toll at 61. At least 26 people, including a few labor brokers, survived the dawn accident. Three are still missing.
Search and rescue workers found it difficult to identify many of the victims because their bodies were badly decomposed. Most of the job seekers came from Tulungagung, East Java.
The sea mishap is the latest of numerous similar stories involving Indonesians dying while attempting to find work. Many times the Malaysian authorities have forced the boats back into rough seas.
The Ministry of Manpower said it would hand out more information on how to legally seek overseas employment. The ministry will also improve coordination among the concerned agencies.
The Committee for Manpower Supply, an organization comprised of representatives from various ministries and from the Intelligence branch of the Armed Forces, also deplored the Nov. 12 accident.
The illegal export of workers was high on the agenda at their recent meeting. The committee members urged that labor scalpers involved in supplying illegal workers be brought to court.
Committee chairman A. Rachim said on Saturday that he strongly recommends that the government improve the labor export procedures to curb the smuggling of humans.
The members also suggested that workers departing from Riau and East Kalimantan, which both share borders with Malaysia, be more strictly monitored.
The committee members also decided to meet with Malaysian counterparts to discuss the export and import of labor.
The ministry's Inspector General is currently in Riau, the closest transit point to Malaysia, collecting more information on the accident.(pwn)